Typographical composing machine



May 14,1940. SYI-TE 0 2.200707 TYPOGRAPHICAL COMPOSING MACHINE Filed Oct. 24, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet l SMALL CAPS I NUMERALS a. MARKS REGULAR CAPS m1 0 .5" 3 L GRO zl Y ll GROUP INVENTOR RICHARD E. SYLTE LOWER CASE NUMERALS 8 MARKS REGULAR CAPS 9 BY z A) ATTORNEY May 14, 1940. R. E. sYLTE 2,200,707

TYPOGRAPHICAL COMPDSING MACHINE Filed Oct. 24, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 GROUP Z -sRouP Y INVENTOR A TORNEY Patented May 14, 1940 t an? TYPOGRAPHICAL CDll/IPOSING MACHHNE Richard E. Sylte, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Intertype Corporation, Brooklyn, N. K,

tion of New York a corpora- Application October 24, 1939, Serial No. 300,905

10 Claims. (cries-19 The present invention relates to improvements in typographical machines and more especially to those of the general class shown and described in U, S. Letters Patent No. 436,532, granted September 16, 1890, wherein fonts of character-bear ing matrices stored in channeled magazines. are released therefrom in response to manipulation of a keyboard and led to a common assembling point where they are composed. into lines, the lines being presented before a slug casting mold and the matrices subsequently being delivered to distributing mechanism. which returns the matrices to their proper places of storage in the magazines from which they were drawn.

The invention relates more particularly to machines of this class equipped with at least two main magazines preferably arranged in superposed relation, each magazine containing a complete font of matrices and each having asso- 20 ciated therewith a series of matrix releasing escapements, and wherein the matrices from both fonts may be composed in the same line. Such machines are commonly known as mixers and y are employed for composition requiring changes 25 from one font or type face to another during the composition of a line, there being provided on the machine dual facilities or the equivalent thereof for assembling and distributing the matrices. In such machines the keyboard is common to 30 ing it operative selectively upon the matrix escapements for one or the other of the magazines. While different schemes may be employed for this purpose a convenient and widely used arrangcment consists in providing keyboard operated escapcment actuating devices which are shiftable or adjustable as a whole into cooperative relation either directly or indirectly with all of the matrix escapements of either one of the magazines each time a change from one font or type face to the other is required.

The primary object of the present invention is to enable the operator of a mixer machine to compose simultaneously from difierent selected ones of a plurality of portions of complete matrix fonts in two main magazines without the necessity of shifting the keyboard connections each time the composition requires a change from one magazine to theother. To elucidate, the charm acters comprising a complete font of matrices as ordinarily contained in a main magazine may be considered as divided into at least three different character groups or sets of matrices arranged within the magazine in contiguous groups of l5 channels. With two superposed magazines,

both magazines and means is provided for renderwhich is the preferable arrangement, and with the font in each of them similarly divided into such a plurality of character groups, corresponding sets of characters will be superposed but the actual style or size of the characters in superposed groups may differ according to the particular fonts in use. Thus, in the upper magazine of a pair thereof the first group in a particular font may comprise a'small cap alphabet, the second group the numerals and points (punctuation marks, etc.) of the font and the third group the regular capital letter alphabet of the font. In another font in the lower magazine the correspondingly disposed character groups may comprise a lower case alphabet, numerals and points, and a regular cap alphabet. In practice, however, many other combinations of character groups may be employed to meet the requirements of different classes of mixed composition and the number of groups may be increased. For example the numerals alone may comprise a fourth group and thus be susceptible to selective use with different character groups in the two fonts" employed. With the particular character group arrangement recited above matter may be composed suchas a list of names requiring the regular caps (third group) of the font in the upper magazine for the first letter in each name and small caps (first group) of the font in the lower magazine for the followlnglettors in each name.

According to the present invention the time and attention of the operator need not be encroached upon in constantly shifting the entire set of keyboard connections in order to draw matrices from the different character groups in the two magazines, it being necessary only to de cide at the outset the character groups in each of the fonts that are required for a given piece of composition and adjust the keyboard connections to suit. Thereafter, the composition may proceed uninterrupted, except in instances where a temporary adjustment may be necessary to to a pair of superposed character groups, that is,

each group of connections will be common to a corresponding group of finger keys on the keyboard and to the escapements of each of a pair of superposed character groups controlied by such finger keys. To enable connection of the keyboard simultaneously to different selected character groups in both magazines each group of keyboard connections is independently shiftahle or adjustable, whereby any character group in one magazine may be selected for use simultaneously with one or more difierent or non-corresponding character groups in the other magazine, or all of the groups in either one of these two magazines may of course be selected for joint use.

Other arrangements have already been proposed for adjusting the keyboard connections in relation to diiferent magazines on a machine, one such arrangement providing for connection of the keyboard as a whole to one magazine or in part to each of two magazines. This proposal, however, refers only to typographical ma chines with at least one main magazine and one auxiliary magazine (a narrow magazine containing only a single group of characters) arranged at one side thereof or in tandem thereto. The keyboard connections for this purpose not only fail to afford the facility of selection of different combinations of several character groups in two complete fonts but obviously also are not adapted to operate in connection with superposed character groups. In another arrangement it has been proposed, using at least three magazines, to connect the escapement actuating devices all to one magazine or simultaneously in part to each of two other magazines on a machine, the latter two magazines containing each a portion only of a font of matrices of an extra thick variety such as a capital alphabet of extra wide letters which are so large that each character is split vertically, one-half being provided on a matrix in one magazine and the other half on a matrix running in the adjacent channel of the other magazine. For this purpose alternate reeds are simply connected to alternate escapements of the two diiferent magazines but all of the reeds cannot be connected only to one of these magazines. 'Here again, no facility is afforded for connecting the keyboard simultane ously to different selected portions of complete matrix fonts in two magazines superposed or otherwise.

In the accompanying drawings, one embodiment of the invention is shown, by way of example, as applied to one form or construction of a mixer machine and to superposed main magazines, and obviously many changes and variations may be made in the arrangement and combination of parts and the specific mode of operation thereof in adapting the invention to machines of somewhat diiferent construction. It is to be understood, therefore, that the invention is not limited to any specific form or embodiment except insofar as such limitations are specified in the claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a side elevation of a portion of a mixer machine to which the invention is applied.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation showing the key board connections of the invention arranged in independently adjustable groups.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view showing the relation between the adjustable groups of keyboard connections and the superposed character groups in two superposed magazines.

fully disclosed Referring to the drawings, the numeral I designates the usual keyboard of a typographical machine of the class referred to, it having in the present instanc ninety finger keys 2 and being supported by fixed frame members of the machine including the cast bracket 3 secured to the column (not shown) of the machine. A fixed frame 4 supports the assembler front 5 which comprises in this case two entrance throats 6 and l respectively for receiving matrices released from the upper magazine 8 and the lower magazine Q in response to manipulation of the keyboard. The magazines 8 and 9 are main magazines of the usual trapezoidal shape each containing in well known manner a font of matrices arranged according to character in channels in the opposed plates thereof.

Keys 23 actuate, by mediation of well known mechanism contained in the rear of the key board housing, the vertically slidable escapement actuating connections or reeds it of which there are ninety arranged in a row, one for each finger key. In a well known form of mixer machine these reeds ordinarily are supported in a single swinging frame so that they may be shifted as a unit into cooperative relation with one or another set of rods l2 or it arranged above them (ninety rods in each set) and extending respectively to the matrix esoapements [2 and w of the upper and lower magazines 8 and 9,. rods l2 and i3 are guided for free vertical movement in slotted strips Hi, i5, i6 secured to frame a and rock the escapements when actuated by the reeds Hi to thereby efiect the release of matrices. The arrangement and operation of similar parts of a mixer machine are more in U. S. Letters Patent No. 1,542,?74 granted June 16, 1925, to which refer once may be had if desired.

As previously stated, the superposed magazines 8 and ii are main magazines of the usual form containing each a font of matrices. Ordinarily, each magazine contains a different font, that is, different as to the design or the size of the type face carried on the matrices and the matrices are arranged in character groups which may diifer according to requirements. Also, it may be stated here that the actual number of charactors in different complete fonts may differ and it is to be understood that although the invention is discussed in connectionwith two ninety character fonts it may be applied equally well to seventy-two character fonts as commonly employed on these machines.

For purposes of illustration, in the present instance, the upper magazine 8 contains a complete ninety character font divided in groups comprising a small capital letter alphabet (26 characters) for the left hand group, numerals and points (punctuation marks) for the center group (38 characters) and a capital letter alphabet (26 characters) for the right hand group. These groups are superposed respectively over corresponding groups in the ninety character font in the lower magazine-such groups co1nprising, at the left, a lower case letter alphabet, in the center a numeral and point group, and at the right a capital letter alphabet. So far as the invention is concerned broadly it does not mat ter whether the actual characters in superposed character groups are alike or different character for character since it is well known that each finger key on the keyboard may carry more than one character designation and thus serve for different sets of characters.

The

As previously stated the object of the present invention is to enable the operator to compose not only selectively from different whole fonts as heretofore, but also simultaneously from different selected ones of a plurality of character groups or portions of fonts carried in two main magazines without performing a shifting operation for every change in the composition from one magazine to the other. For this purpose, according to the invention, the ninety reeds it are divided into three independently adjustable groups X, Y, and Z corresponding to the superposed sets of character groups in the magazines 8 and 9 and these groups of reeds are carried in separate s-hiftable frames I I, I8 and i9 respectively. Each group of reeds isoperated by a corresponding group of finger keys with which they are constantly in operative relation. Since the arrangement of the characters and the grouping thereof on the finger keys of the keyboard is so well known it is deemed sufficient heremerely to state that there are six horizontal rows of fifteen keys each, an alphabet group,

usually the lower case alphabet being grouped on .the set of keys at the left, the figures and marks on the centergroup of keys, and an alphabet group, usually the capital letter alphabet on the right handgroup of keys.

Each of the frames I'I, I8 and I9 is provided along the top edge thereofwith a slotted strip 20 in which the reeds Ifl are guided for vertical movement and at the lower end at each side the frames are provided with l legs 2! tapered, to bearing edges 22 on which they are adapted to 7 rock in shallow grooves 23 on the keyboard frame. Frames I1 and I9 each carry a group of twenty-six reeds I0 adapted to actuate a corresponding number of upper rods l2 or I3 belonging to the right and left hand character groups .in magazines 8 and 9. Frame I8 carries agroup of thirty-eight reeds adapted to actuate a corresponding number of upper rods I2 or 83 belonging to the center character groups in the respective magazines. Thus, there are ninety reeds H) as before but they are now divided into three independently adjustable groups so that the upper ends of the reeds in any group may be shifted into register with corresponding rods It or I3 merely by swinging the required frame ll, I8 or l9.

For independentlyadjusting the three frames I1, I8 and I9 and their respective groups of reeds there are provided three shift levers 2t, 25 and 26 having knobs 24 25 and 26* respectively and preferably arranged beside one another towardthe right and above the keyboard within convenient reach of the operator. Lever 24 is loosely pivoted at 27 to the lower end of a lever 28, the latter being pivotally supported at 2,9 in a bracket 30 and having a fork Si in the upper end thereof freely engaging a pin 32 fixed in lugs 33 projecting from the rear of frame ill. By pulling knob 24 forwardly, from the full line to the dotted line position shown in Fig. 1, frame El and the twenty-six reeds I0 of group Z therein will be shifted from the full line to the dotted line position indicated, that is from operative relation with the upper rods I2 which control the escapements of the right hand character group (capital letter alphabet) in the upper magazine Obviously, by pushing knob 2t? to thus restore'the operativeconnection of the keyboard tothe escapements of the character group in the upper magazine 8.

Reed frames I8 and i9 and the respective groups of reeds Ill contained therein maylikewise be shifted to and fro into register with corresponding upper rods E2 or I3 controlling the escapements of the center and left hand I superposed character groups. For shifting frame I9, lever 25 connected to knob 25 is loosely pivoted at its inner end to an arm 34 pinned to a cross shaft 35 rotatablysupported in two bearing lugs 38 on bracket 30 and in similar bearing lugs 31 and 38 suitably secured to the fixed frame 3. Another arm 39 pinned to shaft 35 is provided with a forked upper end which engages a pin 40 fixed in lugs 4i projecting from the rear of frame l9. Thus, when knob 25 is pulled forward or pushed rearward, shaft 35 is rotated whereby lever 39 swings the upper end of frame it connected to the upper forked end of the lever forward or rearward. For shifting the center frame I8 the lever 26 is loosely pivoted at its inner end to an arm 42 secured to a tubular shaft 43 rotatably supported on shaft 35 between one of the bearings lugs 36 and the lug 31. An arm 44 secured to shaft 43 is provided with a forked upper end whichengages a pin d5 fixed in lugs 46 projecting from the rear of frame I 8. Thus, when knob 25 is pulled forwardly or pushed rearwardly, tubular shaft &3 is rotated whereby lever 44 swings the upper end of frame i8 connected to the upper forked end of the lever forward or rearward.

As illustrated in Fig. 3, the character group comprising the small capital alphabet at the left in the upper magazine 8 is simultaneously operative with the numerals and marks and the regular capital letter character groups in the lower magazine Q. Thus, the reed group X in frame is has been swung forwardly to register with the twenty-six upper escapement actuating rods l2 belonging to the small capital letter alphabet group in magazine 8 while the reed groups Y and Z are in the rearward position to register the reeds l0 thereinwith the upper rods I3 belonging to the center and right hand character groups in magazine 9. By thus providing for independent adjustment of each of the reed groups X, Y and Z it will be seen that the keyboard may be connected simultaneously and selectively in part to desired character groups or portions of the complete font in one magazine and in part to otherclesired character groups or portions of the complete font in another magazine, and such facility for selecting in advance the different portions of each of two complete matrix fonts required for a given piece of composition avoids subsequent distraction and delay in making adjustments of the keyboard connections. Moreover, it will be seen that theconstruction herein provided may be easily adapted to the division of complete fonts into as many character groups as may be considered desirable merely by further subdivision of the reeds into additional separate- 1y adjustable units I claim:

1. In a typographical machine, the combination of two superposed magazines each containing a font of matrices and each provided with a H vices one for each finger key of the keyboard, said devices being arranged in independently adjustable groups whereby the keyboard while operative as a whole may be connected simultaneously to both magazines but to different desired noncorresponding portions of the superposed matrix fonts in such magazines.

2. Ina typographical machine, the combination of two superposed magazines each containing a font of matrices and each provided with a series of escapements, a keyboard common to both magazines and having as many finger keys as there are different characters in a complete font, and a series of 'escapement actuating devices one for each finger key, said devices being adjustable independently by groups each into operative relation selectively with the escapements of corresponding superposed portions of the matrices in the respective fonts, whereby operation of the keyboard will eflfect the release of as many different matrices as comprise a complete font but will release such matrices from any desired combination of non-corresponding portions of the fonts in both magazines.

3. In a typographical machine, the combination of two superposed magazines each provided with escapements and each containing a font of matrices similarly divided into a plurality of character groups with like groups in the respective fonts in superposed relation,- a keyboard common to all of the character groups in both fonts, escapement actuating devices operated by the keyboard anddivided into as many groups as there are character groups in a single font, and means for adjusting each group of actuating devices independently whereby the keyboard may be operatively connected simultaneously to all of the character groups in one font or to any desired combination of unlike character groups in both fonts.

4. In a typographical machine, the combination of two superposed magazines each provided with escapements and each containing a font of matrices divided into a like number of character groups with similarly disposed groups in the respective magazines comprising superposed pairs, a plurality of groups of escapement actuating devices each group controlling the escapements of a superposed pair of character groups, and separate frames supporting each group of actuating devices for adjustment independently into operative relation with the escapements of one or the other of the pair of character groups controlled thereby.

5. In a typographical machine, the combina- 7 tion of two superposed magazines each provided with escapements and each containing a font of matrices similarly divided into a plurality of character groups with corresponding groups in .the respective magazines comprising superposed sets, a keyboard having finger keys equal in number to the characters in a single font and divided into as many groups as there are character groups in a single font, and independently adjustable sets of escapement actuating connections operated by said keyboard, each set of said connections being common to'a different group of finger keys and to the escapements of both of a corresponding superposed set of character groups, whereby the keyboard may be connected simultaneously to any desired combination of non-corresponding character groups in both magazines.

6. In a typographical machine, the combination of two superposed magazines each provided With escapements and each containing a different font of matrices divided into a plurality of different character groups with similar character groups in the respective fonts arranged in superposed relation, a keyboard and a series of connections therefrom foractuating the escapements to effect the release of matrices, said keyboard and said connections being divided into corresponding groups equal in number to the character groups in a single font and each group of connections being adjustable independently whereby the keyboard may be connected simultaneously to the escapements of all of the character groups in either one of the fonts or to any combination of dissimilar character groups in both fonts.

7. A combination as in claim 3, wherein each group-of escapement actuating devices is mounted in a separate shiftable frame and the adjusting means comprises a manually operated lever for shifting each of said frames.

8. In a typographical machinathe combination of two superposed magazines each provided with escapements and each containing a font of matrices divided into a plurality of character groups. with corresponding groups in the respec-v tive fonts comprising superposed sets, a single keyboard common to both magazines, a single series of connections therefrom for controlling all of the escapements in response to manipulation of the keyboard, said connections being divided into groups with each group common to a set of superposed character groups, and two fixed series of escapement actuating rods one series for the escapements of each of the magazines, said groups of connections being independently adjustable relative to corresponding rods in the respective series thereof to thereby render the keyboard operative selectively on the escapements of either of the character groups of the respective superposed sets.

9. A combination as in claim 3 wherein the escapement actuating devices are constantly in operative relation with the keyboard and each group of said devices is carried in a separate shiftable frame, and the adjusting means comprises a manually operated lever connected to each frame for swinging the latter relative to the escapements of like superposed character groups;

10. In a typographical machine, the combination of a plurality of superposed main magazines each containing a font of matrices similarly divided into a like plurality of character groups with corresponding groups in the respective magazines in superposed relation, a series of escapements for each magazine, a single keyboard having as many finger keys as there are characters in a font, and a single series of escapement actuating devices divided into as many groups as there are character groups in a font, all of said devices being constantly connected to the keyboard but 1 each group thereof being separately adjustable into operative relation selectively with different desired ones of the superposed character groups in the respective corresponding character group divisions of the fontsin the plurality of magazines.

RICHARD E. SYLTE. 

